Powell's Virtuoso Performance Comes at Right Time

Bayhawks lure CP out of retirement as he also considers run at
2014 U.S. team

Chesapeake Bayhawks midfielder Casey Powell, 37, got the
better of his matchup Thursday with 25-year-old Brian Farrell of
the Boston Cannons. Powell beat Farrell behind, drew a penalty,
rolled off the ground and dove to score the game-tying goal with 5
seconds left in the Bayhawks' 13-12 overtime victory.

After retiring from Major League Lacrosse as its all-time
leading scorer in 2012, Powell was content to focus on his summer
camp business. The Bayhawks took a flyer on the 37-year-old star
anyway, selecting him in the fourth round of the MLL's supplemental
draft in December.

There were signs Powell still had it. He averaged more than five
points per game for the National Lacrosse League's Colorado Mammoth
after they acquired him from the Rochester Knighthawks. But would
his legs hold up on an outdoor field in sweltering summer heat in
the youth-driven MLL?

The Bayhawks thought so.

"Guys like [Brian] Spallina, [Nicky] Polanco and John Grant Jr.
have been talking me back for a couple months. My plate has cleared
up with my commitments with Team 22 lacrosse camps. I decided to
give it a whirl," Powell said Friday. "I had a pretty good indoor
season, and I'm excited I got a little left in the tank."

That's an understatement. Powell's comments came less than 13
hours after a crowd-pleasing, virtuoso performance in his comeback
game Thursday night. Playing on the Bayhawks' second midfield line,
Powell looked 10 years younger as he spun behind-the-back passes
and stopped, dropped and rolled his way to the game-tying goal with
5 seconds left in regulation of Chesapeake's 13-12 overtime victory
over the Boston Cannons at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in
Annapolis, Md.

Trailing 12-11 with less than 30 seconds left, the Bayhawks got
the ball back when rookie defenseman Jesse Bernhardt intercepted a
pass in the corner. After a timeout, Powell got the ball behind the
goal and drew a penalty when Brian Farrell, Boston's 25-year-old
defenseman, knocked him to the turf from behind.

Powell got up, rolled without losing possession of the ball,
regained his footing and dove in front of the crease as he flipped
a shot around Cannons goalie Jordan Burke.

Powell's final line — three goals, one dazzling assist to
Ben Rubeor — justified the hype surrounding his return.

"I continue to surprise myself and I think other people. I don't
know how I keep maintaining this," said Powell, whose summer
training regimen involved little more than jogging and occasionally
stepping in with a U11 team he coaches. "My intention in coming
back is to try to win a title."

"He's a great passer and very unselfish. He's not afraid of the
moment," Bayhawks coach Dave Cottle said earlier this week. "There
are lots of positives to having a Casey Powell on your team."

"I feel like I've been training for this moment my whole life.
It would be an honor to play for the [2014] U.S. national team. If
I continue to play the way I did [Thursday], hopefully they will
consider me."

— Casey
Powell

Powell, who lives in South Florida, joined the team in Maryland
last week for a Thursday practice before the MLL All-Star break.
His teammates took him tubing on the Chesapeake Bay and they had a
crab feast. He felt good in practice and enjoyed reuniting with the
Bayhawks' MLL veterans while hobnobbing with the younger
players.

"Coach Cottle's words were, 'Casey, we've got a lot of fighter
pilots. All we need is an aircraft carrier,'" Powell said. "We have
a lot of weapons out there."

So CP is back. And his timing could not have been better. After
Thursday's win, the Bayhawks are two games up on Boston for third
place in the MLL standings and can pull even with Hamilton for
second place if the Nationals lose Saturday. With three games
remaining and the top four teams advancing to the playoffs,
Chesapeake now owns the head-to-head tiebreaker against Boston,
should it come down to that.

And Powell might not be done with comebacks. The two-time U.S.
national team member intends to try out for Team USA this summer
with hopes of going out on top in 2014, much like his brother Ryan
did as captain of the 2010 gold medal-winning U.S. team.

"I feel like I've been training for this moment my whole life.
It would be an honor to play for the U.S. national team and put
that jersey on. If I continue to play the way I did [Thursday],
hopefully they will consider me," said Powell, who was co-captain
of the 2006 team that lost to Canada in the FIL final. "I'm still
bitter. In 2006, I was prepared physically, but not mentally. I
have more experience. Ryan did a great job of leading his team. He
wasn't a starter, but he was great in the locker room. I would love
the opportunity to help [the U.S.] win a gold medal in any capacity
I could."